Head scarfs in Essex County: Bend the uniform policy for Muslims

A federal court has been asked to decide whether Essex County discriminated against Yvette Beshier, a Muslim corrections officer, when it fired her for refusing to remove her head scarf.

The U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit last week accusing the county Department of Corrections of wrongfully dismissing Beshier. She had been suspended and later given the sack for wearing a khimar, a Muslim head covering, on the job. Corrections officials said it violated the department's uniform policy.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits discrimination on the job on the basis of race, color, sex, religion or national origin. It also requires that employers make "reasonable accommodation" for religious practices. But when Beshier asked officials to make an exception to the uniform policy to allow her to follow her religious beliefs, they refused.

Undoubtably, this lawsuit could have been avoided. County officials should be able to come up with a uniform policy that allows for reasonable exceptions. This is particularly important in circumstances of private religious expression. As the head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division said, an employee should not have to choose between his or her livelihood and religious beliefs.